Origins of Halloween
by Axann
Summary: Contains my fancharacters from Smash Generation. Halloween one-shot. Shaun asks Dakota about the origins of Halloween.


SMASH GENERATION: HALLOWEEN

BY

AUTOBOT AXANN

**Axann: **I went against my own one shot challenge by not including Toony... (face palm!)

*

It's a peaceful day in the gardens of the Smash Mansion.

"It's Halloween!" Dakota cheered cheerfully as she pounced onto Shaun's back, startling the poor young man into a near death experience as he plummeted to the ground in a crumbling heap. "I'm so excited! Halloween means candy, and candy means I get to eat all the candy I want and not get in trouble for it!"

'Halloween' could also mean that no one is ever too young for it. As, after all, these two are nineteen years old...

"'Halloween' also means that people are going to be pulling pranks on us," Shaun said grimly as he sat up, knocking Dakota to the ground in the process. "Every year some freak tries to burn our camp."

"Well, that sucks," Dakota decided to say as she stood up, dusting herself off. "Have you ever gone trick or treating?"

Shaun looked confused.

"I'll take that as a 'no'." She sneered as she looked at the blue haired mercenary.

This caused only a blink to come from Shaun. "What? I'm a mercenary's son. We don't have time for that."

"Having no time for Halloween is like having no time for Christmas, and I know that you celebrate that holiday," Dakota said in response. She crossed her arms in slight anger and disdain as she thought about her current predicament. "Trick or treating is a fun way to get free candy! You get to dress up in snazzy costumes and walk around the neighbourhood and practically bug people for candy!"

Shaun didn't look convinced. "That sounds so..."

"FUN?" Dakota decided to intrude, a stupid smile on her face. "I know, huh?"

"That wasn't the word I was looking for... but..." Shaun grunted before asking, "Where did the idea of Halloween come from anyways...? It sounds so random."

"Mei Ling used to tell me how Halloween came to be, so I can actually answer that! 2,000 years ago, the Celts celebrated their new year on November 1, as that day marked the end of summer and the harvest, and also the beginning of the cold winter. That was the time of year that they often associated with human death," Dakota explained with a smile. "The Celts believed that on the night before the New Year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred, kind of like the Time of Twilight in Hyrule. So, on October 31, they celebrated something they called Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to the Earth."

"That sounds almost grim," Shaun commented as he too stood up so he was eye to eye with her. "But it does kind of make sense when you think about it."

Dakota continued with her smile. "So, in addition to causing trouble and damaging their crops, the Celts thought that the presence of the otherworldly spirits made it easier for the Druids, or the Celtic priests, to make predictions of the future. These guys were entirely dependent on the natural world, so these prophecies that the Druids would speak of were an important source of comfort and direction for the long winter."

"Really? Are you sure this has something to do with people knocking on doors begging for candy...?" Shaun asked as he crossed his arms.

Dakota laughed heartedly as her arms went behind her head. "Let me get there, first! So, to honour the event, the Druids would build these huge bonfires, and the people gathered to burn crops and animals as sacrifices to the Celtic Gods. During these celebrations, the Celts would were costumes, typically consisting of animal heads and skins, and they always attempted to tell each other's fortunes. When the celebrations ended, they would re-light their hearth fires, which they extinguished earlier that evening, from the bonfire to help protect them during the coming winter."

"Well, at least the costume bit can be compared to Halloween of today," Shaun noted as he looked thoughtful, still considering the words that Dakota was telling him. "And Mei Ling told you all this?"

"Uh huh," Dakota said with a nod. "So, I'm just going to skip the part where the Romans invade the Celts, and get to the part you want to know."

"Sounds good."

"The tradition that we do, 'trick or treating', dates back to the early All Souls' Day parades in England."

"Wait, so first we're talking about Celts, and now we're in freaking England? Come to think of it, where are these places? I've never heard of a "Celt" or "England" in Sedaindo before!" Shaun realized.

"Ignore it! Mei Ling said it was all from another world and we stole all their ideas!" Dakota half-explained. She got back to the history of trick or treating. "So, anyway, the All Souls' Day parade. During those, poor citizens would beg for food and families would give them pastries that they called 'soul cakes', in return for their promise to pray for the family's dead relatives. The giving out of the soul cakes was encouraged by the local churches as a way to replace the ancient practice of leaving food and wine for roaming spirits. The practice, which was referred to by then as 'going a-souling', was eventually taken up by children who would visit the houses in their neighbourhood and be given ale, food and money."

"Children would be given ale...?"

"Ignore it! So, onto the costumes. The tradition of dressing in a costume for Halloween has both the European and Celtic roots. Hundreds of years ago, on that same world that "England" exists on, winter was an uncertain and frightening time. Food supplies often ran low, and, for the many people afraid of the dark, the short days of winter were full of constant worry," Dakota explained as she stood there with a smile. "On Halloween, when it was believed that ghosts came back to the earthly world, people thought that they would encounter ghosts if they left their home. So, to avoid being recognized by in-laws, uncles, old rivals and friends, they would wear masks when they left their homes after dark so that these spirits would mistake them for fellow spirits."

"... That's just..."

"Don't comment!" Dakota interrupted with a smile still on her face. "So! That's the origins of Halloween!"

"That's it? People dress up to prevent from being seen from ghosts and the begging for candy bit was from beggars on a street? Geez... I'm almost disappointed," Shaun retorted.

"Nah," Dakota said cheerfully as she grabbed him by the collar. "Now it's just for fun! Come on! I want you to go trick or treating with me!"

"I don't want to be a beggar..."

"It's not begging!"

***

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

From

Autobot Axann, Chrislma, Kageshi, Raxas and K3V1N!


End file.
